This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Since buying my 2007 Prius, I have had an ongoing problem with either the driver's-side or passenger-side headlights going out, usually within 5-10 minutes after starting the car. On one occasion, both headlights went out at once while my husband and I were on a bridge on an interstate highway. The headlights usually come back on after quickly turning the light switch off and then back on. I talked with a repairman at my Toyota dealer about the problem several months ago and he indicated that Toyota had gotten some bad bulbs. But I find it hard to believe that is the problem. I began experiencing the problem shortly after buying the car when I was stopped at a driver's license check and the police officer told me the driver's side light was out. When I arrived home about 15 minutes later and checked the light, it was on. Clearly this is a very dangerous situation.
Passenger headlight low beam functions intermittently. At some times the light is at full intensity, at other times the light is completely dead, and sometimes the light output is a fraction of full output. Hid lights should last 150K plus miles. Toyota dealer wanted $400 to replace bulb and would not guarantee this was the problem. Independent repair shop wanted $190 for same repair. This is an enormous safety hazard and sort of crazy that Toyota has this defect and has not determined the root cause.
Almost immediately after the purchase of our new Prius, I noticed flickering of the hid headlights. I thought it odd but had never used hid headlamps before. This past winter I noticed the left headlight would stop illuminating altogether. I figured I would have to replace the bulb but then found that if I turned the headlight switch to the off position and then back to the on position the headlight would come back on. Since the cost to replace the headlamp is rather expensive and there is no guarantee the replacement would solve the problem, I continue to drive the vehicle at night watching for when the headlight goes out. I keep my fog lamps on all the time so I have forward illumination in case both headlights go out. Once I see the light has gone out, I wait until I stop at a traffic control device or there is no oncoming traffic to quickly turn the headlight switch off and on again to illuminate the headlight. I had one experience recently where the left headlight had gone out and before I had opportunity to turn the headlight switch off and on again, the right headlight also went out. Fortunately I had the fog lamps on as I had my wife and 7 month old granddaughter in the vehicle with me. But as before, once I turned the headlight switch off and then on again, both headlights came back on.
Intermittent headlight operation on hid headlights 2007 Toyota Prius. Both headlights went out at the same time while traveling on I75 last night. After almost wrecking, we pulled to the side of the road. After turning lights off for a while they came back on and started working again. This seems to be a frequent occurrence according to blogs on the internet. I contacted the dealer and they said if they had to replace the unit it would be in the thousands of dollars!!!!! ($1100 for headlight computer, $500- $600+ for headlight bulbs and another $1100 for light kits) I think that is completely ridiculous to expect someone to pay that much just to be able to drive there car safely! none of this was revealed when the car was purchased! how could anyone expect to pay that kind of money to keep there headlights working? please help, we cannot afford to drive safely now!
I have a 2007 Toyota Prius. In July 2009 one hid headlight began flickering. The dealer told me he would have to remove the bumper to replace the headlight and recommended I replace both headlights at the same time. I did and the total cost $545. The vehicle had 44,000 miles at the time and only 2 years old. I wrote a letter to Toyota complaining about the failure of the bulb so soon, the poor design that required the bumper to be removed, and the total cost...I never received a response. This year I was the recipient of the "2006-2009 model year Prius hid headlight customer support program". I sent in all of the required information and was recently told I would receive $51 from the program. That is a far cry from the $545 I spent.
- Derwood, MD, USA
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Headlights to Toyota Prius flicker and turn off while driving once I turn the headlight switch, off then on again, lights come back on. This only occurs with one headlight at a time
My 2007 Prius head lights turn off while driving. In most cases only one light will go out at a time. But there has been at least 3 instances in the last week where both lights have turned off while driving. I turn the light knob off and on when I notice the outage.
One or both headlights go off while driving. Problem first occurred on March 12th, 2010 and since then has increased in frequency occurring at intervals of typically less than 30 minutes driving. Sometimes the headlight(s) flicker briefly before going off; at other times there is no warning. Turning the light switch off and back on is effective in turning the headlights back on.
2007 Toyota Prius headlights issue. As I am driving the lights will randomly turn off. I contacted the Toyota dealership and they said that you can replace the light bulb. This did not fix the situation. The lights still continue to randomly turn off.
I began a 70 mile trip on the interstate at dusk in my 2007 Prius with the headlights on, or so I thought. It seemed they were not illuminating the road as well as usual. I turned my brights on to better see the curve on an interchange and the lights went completely off. I turned the brights off and the lights came back on, but I had drifted near a concrete barrier. I averted a crash, but was close enough to the barrier to see that I had foglamps on, but no headlights. Normally this arrangement is not possible. You can have headlights on without foglamps, but not foglamps without headlights. Turning the headlight switch off, then on did not help. When I stopped, leaving the car turned on. I was able to reproduce the bright switch turning off all the lights. The headlights would not turn on. I turned off the car, when I turned it back on, the headlights worked normally. In July, 2009, my daughter was driving this Prius and was stopped for having one headlight out. It worked when I took it to the Toyota dealer the next day. Then for several days, one headlight or the other was out intermittently but not reproduce-ably. Then the problem cleared up until this incident in March, 2010.
My 2007 Toyota Prius with hid headlights has had intermittent headlight failure 7 times since the first occurrence in January 2007. I took my car to the service department of dealer from whom I bought the car new. The service writer told me that since the problem is intermittent and the headlights are currently working it is likely that they might not find the cause of the problem. So, I did not leave my car with the service writer.
When the car is first started, the driver side headlight usually goes out within the first few minutes of driving. It is almost always the driver side but it has happened a few times with the passenger side. When I turn the headlights off and then back on both headlights function, although the light that had been out initially is not as bright as the other. This happens intermittently for the first 10-20 minutes of driving and then both headlights seem to function properly. I recently drove at night for nearly 5 hours and only had this problem during the first 20 minutes of driving.
I have been driving a 2007 Toyota Prius since July 2007. The hid headlights switch off automatically while driving. Sometimes the left hid switches off but the right headlights stays on. The headlights turn off but the display from the inside says that headlights are turned on. The headlights come on if I turn the headlights off and turn them back on then both of them are working till they switch off again during driving. Almost got in a T-bone accident when the other driver did not see me. If I am driving using cruise-control, the car seem to speed up a bit just for a sec a or two when you initially apply brakes.
My 2007 Toyota Prius has a safety related defect with the hid lights. These lights will go out sporadically while driving. Often times it takes less than 10 seconds for both lights to be off while driving at night. I have replaced both lights, twice with aftermarket bulbs and the problem remains. Toyota is charging $450 to replace the bulbs a third time, with no warranty if they fail. This same repair can be done online with identical bulbs for $50. Adding to the difficulty is that the bulb housing is largely inaccessible for a normal user. Many owners, based on hundreds of descriptions on the internet, have taken to removing the entire bumper just to replace the headlight bulb (which is what I have to do since my hands aren't tiny). This design flaw exacerbates the repair of a safety related defect. The hid lightbulbs in question are denso D4R's, which according to jd power should have an average lifespan of 90,000 miles for an average user. Most users are experiencing half of this value. Indicating the ECU or ballast is at fault despite the initial research done on this particular topic by NHTSA, my headlights do both fail within a short period of time of one another - constituting a legitimate safety concern. One will fail upon turning the car on within a few seconds, leaving the 2nd to either fail shortly after, or at any period of time after this point. This is with new bulbs that are at spec for the car according to the manual. I have no course of resolution for this matter, and Toyota is unwilling to help. I am concerned about my safety while driving this car, especially in the rain, or at night. I would hope that the NHTSA takes light failures as seriously as they do brake and accelerator failures, as they're also likely to lead to accidents.
I've got a package 2 2007 Prius. One of the headlights keeps going out. I can't really tell when or how it goes out since I can't see it. I'll notice it when I see the reflection in the back of another car. If I turn the bright lights on and off it has no effect, but when I turn them all the way off and back on the light comes back. Sometimes on long trips it will stay on the whole time, sometimes it won't. sometimes on short trips it will go out, sometimes it won't. it is not an event I can make happen.
Driverside front headlight intermittently went out. Took my automobile to original dealer on March 9, 2010 and it was replaced. During my conversation with the service advisor, he indicated that the passenger side headlight might experience the same problem. He was correct. On March 10, 2007 the passenger side began having the same problem. This is the same problem described in NHTSA -PE09019. I am concerned for my safety and others who will be affected. In addition I have no assurance that this replacement will not be required over and over at a very high dollar cost. Please advise.
The headlamps on my 2007 Toyota Prius intermittently fail. They periodically flicker. The headlamps operate after being turned off for some time. No crash yet! dangerous situation!
1. wife is leary of driving our 2007 Toyota Prius because of problem brakes. We need a better description of what happens when we try to turn off the engine going 100 mph. 2. lights are poor. We cannot see very far ahead in this deer infested environment. I have better lights on my 1997 Hyundai 3. one or the other headlight flickers and goes out for no understandable reason. We turn the lights off and turn them on again and it works ok. This could be a safety hazard. What is being done to fix it. 4. seating. My first encounter with the Toyota complaint system cam about as I was trying to get the driver seat moved back because I have long legs. The dealer said they have no way of fixing this but that I should go to the after market. I asked if Toyota would accept an aftermarket solution. The dealer said that they will evaluate it after it is installed to tell us if it meets safety specifications no aftermarket supplier will try to fix this because they have not assurance that it will be accepted by Toyota. Yet Toyota gives no technical information about what is acceptable. I complained formally to the dealer and got nowhere. I then sent a formal complaint to national Toyota. They passed the complaint back to the dealer for response. For me this is a major flaw in the Toyota complaint handling system. They have a closed loop when it comes to complaints. 5. I like the car and it gets the mileage I expected. I am not sure I will ever get another Toyota if there are reasonable alternative that get good mileage.
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- Rocky Point, NC, USA